| Space Chimps | |
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Theatrical release poster |
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| Directed by | Kirk DeMicco |
| Produced by | Barry Sonnenfeld John H. Williams |
| Written by | Kirk DeMicco Rob Moreland |
| Starring | Andy Samberg Cheryl Hines Jeff Daniels Patrick Warburton Kristin Chenoweth Kenan Thompson Carlos Alazraqui Zack Shada |
| Music by | Chris P. Bacon |
| Cinematography | Jericca Cleland |
| Editing by | Debbie Berman |
| Studio | Vanguard Animation Odyssey Entertainment Starz Animation Studiopolis |
| Distributed by | 20th Century Fox |
| Release date(s) | July 18, 2008 |
| Running time | 81 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $37 million |
| Box office | $64,834,964 |
Space Chimps is a 2008 computer-animated family comedy film produced by Vanguard Animation, Starz Media and 20th Century Fox, and it was released on July 18, 2008.[1] The film is produced by Barry Sonnenfeld, John H. Williams, and John W. Hyde and stars the voices of Andy Samberg, Cheryl Hines, Jeff Daniels, Patrick Warburton, Kristin Chenoweth, Kenan Thompson, Carlos Alazraqui and Zack Shada.
The teaser ad for this movie premiered on June 20, 2008 during a Fox broadcast of another primate/space-related movie - 2001's remake of Planet of the Apes.
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The movie begins with Ham III (Andy Samberg), grandson of the first chimpanzee in space, being a cannonball at his circus and later being criticized by his grandfather's friend Houston (Carlos Alazraqui). Meanwhile, an unmanned NASA space probe called the Infinity is dragged into an intergalactic wormhole, and crash-lands on an Earth-like planet on the other side of the galaxy. Zartog (Jeff Daniels), an evil-minded inhabitant, accidentally discovers how to take manual control of the on-board machinery and uses it to enslave the population.
Faced with the loss of the probe and probable loss of their budget, the scientists have to find a way to regain contact with the probe, to help retrieve the wayward craft. Technical genius chimp Comet (Zack Shada) gets the scientists to pick them as astronauts to explore the planet and get the probe back, with the help of the fearless Lt. Luna (Cheryl Hines), and their bombastic commander, Titan (Patrick Warburton). The Senator (Stanley Tucci) likes the idea, but wants something extra special to grab the attention of the media, and picks Ham. Ham is uninterested in the mission, but he is launched into space despite his best efforts to escape the scientist's training facility.
The three chimps enter the wormhole, where Titan and Luna pass out from the pressure, leaving Ham with the task of getting the ship out and landing it. This is done, and Ham and Luna explore the planet, during which their ship, along with Titan, is taken by a group of aliens sent by Zartog.
Ham and Luna begin their journey to Zartog's palace, and on the way they meet one of the inhabitants, known to them as Kilowatt (Kristin Chenoweth). Kilowatt offers to lead them to the palace, but soon after they encounter a flesh-eating monster in a cave. The monster blocks the exit, but Kilowatt distracts it, sacrificing herself so Ham and Luna can escape.
The two chimps finally reach the palace, where they discover that Titan has been teaching Zartog some of the probe's features. They rescue him and are able to board their ship, but just as they are about to leave, Ham glances outside and sees Zartog torturing some of the other aliens. He then tells Titan and Luna that they indirectly sent the probe there, and that they owe it to Kilowatt to help save the planet. The three of them exit the ship, which blasts off set to autopilot, but as they are trying to think of a plan, Zartog attacks them with the probe. Just as they are about to get destroyed, Titan tricks Zartog into triggering an ejection mechanism in the probe, which in turn leads to his defeat.
The chimps then discover that Kilowatt has survived, and they are able to make contact with Comet and Houston back on Earth through a walkie-talkie. Houston reminds them that if they can redesign the probe, then they can use it to get back to Earth. They manage to do this with help from the planet's inhabitants and they use an erupting volcano to get the thrust they need to escape the planet's gravity.
They go into space, and just as they are about to re-enter the wormhole, Titan hands the controls over to Ham, since Ham is the only one who can withstand the pressure, and thus, the only one who can pilot the ship home. Titan and Luna once again pass out. Ham is unsure if he is up to the task until he has a mental conversation with his grandfather, who tells him to believe in himself and to just do things his (Ham's) way.
Ham manages to manoeuver the ship back to Earth and land it with Luna's help, and the Senator, under pressure from the press, decides to dramatically increase the space program's funding. The film ends with a celebration being held for the chimps' return.
The premiere was held on July 13, 2008 in Los Angeles, California.[2]
Critical reaction has been mixed to negative. Rotten Tomatoes reported that 36% of professional critics gave positive reviews based on 89 reviews, giving it a Rotten rating overall. The RT Consensus states: "Space Chimps' cheap animation and overabundance of monkey puns feels especially dated in a post-WALL-E world." [3]
Roger Ebert gave a positive review towards the film. Ebert gave the film 3 stars and saying in his review that "Space Chimps is delightful from beginning to end".[4] The New York Times claimed Space Chimps was "hilarious".[5]
The film opened with $7.1 million in 2,511 theaters with an $2,860 average.[6] However, the film became a moderate box office success. The film has grossed $30.1 million in the United States and $33.6 million in other countries totaling $63.8 million worldwide.[7]
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